Job Point Education Program - May 23, 2018

By: Claire Hassler, Missouri River Relief

Well, that’s a wrap on our “Stewardship on the Missouri River” education program! Missouri River Relief (MRR) spent the whole day at Katfish Katy’s in Huntsdale, Missouri working with AmeriCorps members from Youth Build and Job Point. The members were young adults, ages 16 to 24, from St. Louis, Kansas City, and Columbia, Missouri. They investigated the river at stations on land and then worked together in service of the Missouri River by picking up trash.

Morning Welcome and Introduction to the Missouri River

For this education program, we partnered with Job Point, which is an employment center that helps people with career planning and job placement assistance. Job Point was an excellent partner and this program wouldn’t have been possible without them. Thank you Job Point!

We started off the day by introducing the students to the Missouri River, Missouri River Relief, and Job Point. We were also grateful to have Senator Blunt’s Community Liaison Ailey Pope and the Boone County Presiding Commissioner Dan Atwill join the education program and give words of support.

Words of support and encouragement from Senator Blunt's Community Liaison

There were about 60 students at this program. We split them into two groups, 30 in each, because the day was divided into two segments: On the Water and On the Land.

On the Land
For one portion of the day, students rotated through three stations on land to learn more about the longest river in North America. The first On the Land station was called "We All Live Downstream." It was a stream table model of the Missouri River put on by Boone County Storm Water Education.

Hands-on and minds-on while learning how the river has changed over time 

Theresa Thomas and Lynne Hooper presented and instructed the students. They taught participants about how stormwater becomes contaminated and also how best management practices improve the quality and reduce the quantity of stormwater that enters the Missouri River.

Studying the kinds of bugs that live on the Missouri River

The second land station was called "Through the Eyes of a Scientist" and it was all about using microscopes to investigate macroinvertebrates that live in the Missouri River.  Amy Meier and Lily Kennedy with the Missouri Department of Conservation guided the students with the microscopes and showed them all kinds of bugs that live on the Missouri River. They taught participants about adaptations and assessing the quality of a stream site based on the macroinvertebrates that live there.

Station three on the land was a guided bird observation hike hosted by Paige Witek with the Missouri River Bird Observatory. Paige taught the students how to use binoculars and showed them bird skull replicas of species that live along the Missouri River. 

Giving pointers on how to identify the difference on species of hawks

On the hike, participants explored the natural history and adaptations of birds that live along the river and got to practice finding the moving birds in their binoculars. After a lunch break, the On the Land group and On the Water group switched places.

On the Water

After a safety talk and getting fitted for life jackets, participants headed out onto the river! MRR had three boats on the water. 

For a lot of AmeriCorps members, it was their first time on the Missouri River. 

Our experienced boat captains and deckhands gave the students a guided tour, pointing out an eagle’s nest as they passed it and sharing the history of the river. 

Looking in all the right places for river trash

Enjoying the river breeze with beautiful views of the bluffs 

Some boats also stopped along the way to pick up trash. Here is the trash tally of what they found:

• 21 bags of trash!
• 55 gallon drum
•   2 large Styrofoam chunks
• 2 Large plastic tubs
• Cattle feeding tub
•  Large cooler (coffin cooler)
• Plastic tool box
• Large cooler
• 3 tires on rim
• Box tv
• Fridge door

For many students, it was their first time out on the river. Because of this, a lot of growth happened.

At the end of the day as part of our group reflection, we did a whip around activity. The students stood in a giant circle and went around one by one, saying one word they used to describe the Missouri River before today’s program and one word to describe it after today’s program. 

Here are some things the students said: 

• Before / After:
• Big / beautiful
• Trashy / cool
• Watery / peaceful
• Dirty / relaxing
• Gross / refreshing
• Dirty / fun
• Scary / chill
• Dirty / serene
• Big / tranquil

The day was hot, but our students and presenters were champions and finished the day with smiles on their faces and chilled towels on their heads!

A lot of people helped make this program happen. A big thank you to our experienced boat drivers and deckhands: Steve Schnarr, Kevin Tosie, Jeff Boot Barrow, Patty Farrar, Steve Sadich, and Mike Crist. And our amazing presenters included Amy Meier, and Lily Kennedy with the Missouri Department of Conservation, Theresa Thomas and Lynne Hooper from Boone County Stormwater and Paige Witek from the Missouri RiverBird Observatory.

If you would like to learn more about MRR education programs, please contact Education Director Kristen Schulte at kristen@riverrelief.org, and check out our education program page!

Hot Enough?

published by John Brady on June 2, 2014

This morning started with a short cup of coffee, some granola with blueberries and some stretching exercise. I knew I had to fuel up well this morning as I was to accompany a River Relief “Tiger Team” into some gnarly river-side woods to finish up bringing out the last big items of trash discovered during two recent forays into the area by two different groups of crew members. 

The area is owned by the US Army Corps of Engineers (theoretically, that’s you and me, with others). It lies along a functional chute through an area that has been known as long as I can remember as “Party Corner”.

Out along the road that runs along the property and beside the river, just about every weekend different groups of nature lovers shamelessly drop their beer cans, garbage, fireworks wrappers, used diapers and worse. We have cleaned up there many times. 

This project was special, however, as we were to go into the thick of this wedge-shaped parcel by boat and attempt to clean it of all of the flood deposits of trash from the last decade. The USACE had contracted River Relief to do the job in return for a modest amount of much needed cash. It was a project that our executive director made happen in the hopes we could knock it out quickly with a minimum of expense.

So in went the four of us around 9 a.m., just as the temperature and the relative humidity both hit about 88. Sweat was copious just trying to walk into the stashes of refrigerators and tires through the knee-high Japanese Hops (an invasive vinous plant whose leaves irritate bare skin) and over the numerous hidden down falls. It was hot, sweaty and miserable work.

As Jeff and Alex carried tires and barrels out to an open spot on the high bank, Steve and I went to work with a chop saw on a mud-filled refrigerator Alex and I had disinterred on the first go-around. 

Thank the gods for power tools! 

Refrigerators are difficult to deal with when embedded as sawing them up entails fighting the foam insulation infused with mud that drags the saw blade speed down so that the only way to make progress is with little bites and chewing thoroughly. We then packed all of the pieces out to the river bank cache.

The boat was then carefully brought down and the heavy objects lowered down the bank with a rope and carried into the boat. In about an hour and a half we were done there and panting in the boat between deep draughts of cool water from the water jug. 

Grimy all over, we agreed with Jeff’s idea of going across the river to see if we could spot through the recent growth the two refrigerators seen on a high bank during a previous trip through that area.

Sure enough, eagle eyes and honed institutional instinct soon spotted both of them. One by one they were lowered down the bank and wrestled into the boat. After a careful round-to, we turned on the air conditioner (throttled up on plane and made our own breeze). All of us were wet down to the knees with sweat. 

Soon we had the nearly full 24 foot “Hildy” on her trailer and headed for the scrap dealer’s and the land fill. A small job, truthfully, but in essence our history is one of many “small jobs” knitted into a body of work that has affected many people and communities in over 700 miles of the Missouri River over the last 13 years.

It truly is a disease and we have it bad. 

Yeah, today was hot enough for most anyone. 
 
The work was cool enough for us. 

See you on The River!

Hartsburg Results!

Hartsburg Missouri River Clean-up

MDC Public Boat Access, Hartsburg, MO

October 19th, 2013

Total Volunteers: 194 

MRR Crew:  32 

Boats:  10  (5 Missouri River Relief, 1 MDC, 2 DNR 1 MU Coop, 1 Private) 

River Miles:  9 miles (Missouri River miles 156 - 165) 

River Level: 5.4 ft on the Jefferson City gage 

Tires: 30 Tires (approx. .5 tons) 

Landfill Tonnage:  1.24 tons 

Recycling Tonnage: approximately .6 tons 

Scrap Metal:  .6 tons 

Total Tonnage:  2.9 Tons!

Groups and Agencies Involved:  Missouri River Relief, Missouri Dept. of Natural Resources, Missouri Dept. of Conservation, University of MO Coop Unit,  William Woods University - Project 123, Lincoln University - MANRRS, Fema Corps S4, Fema Corps B1, UMKC – SEC, Battle High - Volleyball Girls, Hickman High School - Biology Club, Boys and Girls Club of Jefferson City, Missouri Stream Team's –  211, 1875, 2504, 3419, 3802,, Rock Bridge High School – SEC, MO Master Naturalists, Lincoln University – Wildlife Society, True/False set-up crew

Names of River Teams:  Stream Team 3802, Resource Recovery, Sweet Pickles, River Dykes, Giant Purple Banana Eaters, Trash F@#$%$, Lincoln Corps, Five Star, BajaTisa, MANRRS, Kewps, Team Bajsyl, Turnups, Fantastic Princesses, Team Tiger, Awesome Varsity Squad, Un-Electronics, Alfredo, Raven Claw, Hickman Biology Club

Trash Tally!!!!

76 Bags of Trash

39 Bags of Recyclables

30 Tires

4 – 5-gal. Plastic Buckets

1 – 5-gal. Metal Drum

2 – 55 gal. Metal Drums

4 – 55 gal. Plastic Barrels

1 – 55 gal. Plastic Barrel Lid

4 – Large Plastic Jugs

2 – Refrigerator Doors

3 – Chest Freezers

2 – Compressors

4 Propane Tanks

1 Large Propane Tank with regulator

1 Plastic Shower Base

1 Toilet Base

2 Plastic Milk Crates

1 TV

2 partial Bed Frames

1 Folding Chair

1 Plastic Trash Can Lid

1 Plastic Table

1 Car Bumper 

1 Muffler

1 huge Mud Flap (18-wheeler)

6 ft of Carpet

8 ft of Plastic Pipe

1 3x3 ft Wall with Insulation

1 Full, sealed bottle of Virex AIDS medication (valued at $400)

2 Paint Cans

6ft of Rebar

1 Plastic cup from Jolly Roger's in Sioux City, IA

1 Concrete Boot Anchor

1 Lady Speed Stick Deoderant

1 fully functioning Sharpie permanent marker

2 Inner Tubes

1 ½” Tubing

1” Cable

4x16 ft of Sheet Metal

1 Window Weight

5 pieces of Scrap Iron

33 Balls

4 Flip Flops

2 Beverage Mugs 

1 Car Mirror

1 Spot Light

1 small Propane Bottle

1 Electric Conduit Box

1 Halloween cookie tin

1 Rusty Skillet

1 Hockey Puck

Sasquatch’s Toe Spreader

2 Fan Blades

2 Little Coolers

2 Hearts

2 Metal Hooks

1 Sledding Suit

1 K-State Can Coozie

½ Fishing Pole

1 Rocket Launcher

1 Septic Pump

1 Easter Egg

1 Sippy Cup 

1 Red Light

1 Brake Pad

1 concrete Boot

1 Fancy Baby Bottle w/ nipple

1 Giant Fork

1 Toy Tank

1 Tiny Trashcan

1 Sexy Underpants 

1 Brake Light

Fireworks Detritus  

1 Lantern   
1 Bike Pedal
1 Batters Helmet

1 Big Glass Jug

1 Minnow Net

1 Typewriter Feed

1 Rubber Frog

1 full container of Chicken Livers

1 Plastic Pumpkin

1 Hypodermic Needle 

1 Fishing Hat

1 Bobber

1 External Thumbdrive

1 plastic Koala

To read more about the clean-up and view results, check out our 2013 Hartsburg Clean-up webpage.